The final countdown

There's a small dairy case just inside one set of doors in the new Dillons Marketplace where customers can run in to grab a dozen eggs or a gallon of milk.

If it's your first time inside the massive new store at 3200 Plaza East Drive, however, don't expect to get out in less than an hour.

Employees in various departments of the store continued on Friday stocking the literally mile-plus of shelving in anticipation of Wednesday's grand opening.

The stocking, which began more than a month ago, said store manager Mike Matney, is nearing completion, with primarily perishable foods remaining to be placed.

"Many we can stock in advance, but some we'll wait until Monday or Tuesday and even start the wee hours of Wednesday morning moving them in," Matney said. "We want to keep things as fresh as possible."

The floral and produce aisles were starkly empty compared to most of the 125,000-square-foot store, though signage was in place featuring "local" farm families who will supply fruits and vegetables to the grocery.

Local, explained Sheila Lowrie, Dillon Stores communications coordinator, is considered shipped from within 400 miles. Depending on the season, it may include lettuces, melons, squash, beans, onions, tomatoes and fruits.

"We've had long-standing contracts with many of our partners, but this will allow us to showcase some of the families so our customers can know them," she said.

There will also be a wide variety of imported and organic fruits and vegetables, Lowrie said. Counting mushrooms and herbs, more than 100 items will be offered in the fresh market, more than twice the space dedicated to fruit and vegetables in the current 30th Avenue Dillons.

Yellow sticky notes in empty metal trays showed what would go where in the new expanded salad bar; a handwritten note indicated shelves on a nearby stand-alone display rack for a variety of fresh artisan breads.

A dozen future Starbucks workers practiced making drinks Friday morning for other circulating store employees, while around the corner a group of "cheese stewards" cubed a variety of cheeses and offered them to media touring the store, the smell of cooking Asiago cheese foretelling the appearance of fresh baked cheese crisps.

The stewards, Lowrie said, will help customers understand the variety of cheeses - the display will hold close to 90 - and how to pair them with foods or wines.

Product vendors were also spread around the store Friday, setting up displays or helping employees understand finer points of their products to relay to future customers.

"The countdown is on," Lowrie said. "We're very excited to welcome customers and open the doors for the first time."

More store features

A new sushi kiosk also stood empty near the indoor/outdoor dining area, which will feature hand-rolled, prepared-daily sushi favorites, such as "spicy salmon, crunchy dragon and California rolls," Lowrie said. There are self-check registers nearby.

The store retains the Asian kitchen, American deli and bakery all familiar to Store No. 48 shoppers. It also has a seafood department that will now offer smoked fish as well as fish flown in from Hawaii, Lowrie said.

Other grocery additions include whole sections of natural and organic cereals and other foods, bulk grains, fruits and nuts, as well as candies. The bulk area includes grinders to create three varieties of fresh peanut butter.

An "international food" aisle the width of the store offers cans, boxes and bottles under regional titles: India, English, Mediterranean, Asian and Hispanic.

Other new specialty departments include:

* A pet department, which includes bones, chews and toys;

* A Kitchen Place, which includes small appliances, food "gadgets" and coordinate place settings and table linens;

* A Home Center, which includes laundry and cleaning supplies as well as storage and household goods;

* A Fashion Center that includes clothing, shoes and accessories for men, women and children;

* An expanded selection of cosmetics as well as beauty supplies divided into "his and hers," Lowrie said;

* A "fan shop" offering shirts, mugs, and specialty items featuring logos of state college and local high schools, including Hutchinson, Buhler, Trinity, Nickerson and Central Christian schools.

* A Fred Meyer jewelry store, offering a full line of diamond and engagement rings, watches and other jewelry;

Stand-alone departments also moving with the store include the Dillons Pharmacy - offering two drive-in lanes, six pharmacists and a private counseling room - as well as a First National Bank of Hutchinson branch.

"Like no other"

"This store has as look and feel like no other Dillons location," Lowrie said.

It's decorated in pale, warm colors, the floor a coated concrete that will make keeping it clean easier, using fewer chemicals, Lowrie said.

The widths of aisles vary, depending on the anticipated levels of traffic in them. Heavily shopped aisles are much wider, Matney explained. The grocery part of the store is also designed based on how people shop, said Lowrie, based on data gathered from Dillons Plus cards.

"A mom shopping for lunch for her kids will find what she needs in one area, from juice boxes to snack items, rather than the way we used to sort," Lowrie said.

The store's lighting is a combination of 160 skylights - one about every 10 feet - and electric lights with automated dimmers, so electric light levels will adjust based on how much sun is coming in.

The store lost all but two of the skylights in the July 23 hailstorm, but there was no flood damage, said construction project manager Scott Rooks. The month's rain didn't slow construction because the store was "dried in" when it hit, Rooks said. It did back up work on installing the parking lot, he said, but didn't really affect the opening schedule.

Dairy cases are dark until a customer walks by or opens a case, which then lights up. It's just one of many design elements in the store to save on energy. An innovative program electronically controls the store's refrigeration, heating, cooling and ventilation systems, which also include heat collection and high-efficiency fan motors.

The store's meat cooler can serve as a storm shelter during severe weather, Matney said, housing 200 to 250 people.

***

The Dillons Markeplace will open at 7 a.m. Wednesday.

A formal ribbon-cutting is set for 9 a.m.

Dedication of the trailhead outside the store will be at 9 a.m. Aug. 30.

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